Applebloom's Thanksgiving
by Pre-Animation Man
Summary: aka, The Apple Family Thankgiving


The weekend had gotten off to a great start, and Applebloom's spirits had stayed high until just before it was time for her to go home. That's when Big Macintosh had told her that he had to leave on another business trip to California. She would not be able to spend her next scheduled weekend with him. And worst of all, that weekend was Thanksgiving.

Walking to school with Babs Seed on Monday morning, Applebloom looked at the kindergarten windows. They were decorated with cutouts of turkeys that the little children had made.

"I wish I was back in kindergarten drawing turkeys again," Applebloom said. Kindergarten was B.D. Before the Divorce.

"Hey," said Babs Seed. "You don't think I would hang around with a little kid in kindergarten, do you?"

Applebloom shrugged miserably.

"So what's your father going to do in California?" Babs Seed asked.

"His company is opening a new office, and he's going there to arrange things. I wish Thanksgiving was over already," Applebloom sighed. "I'm tired of looking at those old paper turkeys."

"Oh, well," said Babs Seed. "You'll soon be seeing Christmas decorations instead. They go up the second Thanksgiving is over."

Applebloom nodded. She wondered where she would spend Christmas vacation. That was an even longer holiday than Thanksgiving.

"Maybe you could have Thanksgiving dinner at my house?" Babs Seed offered.

Applebloom shook her head. She always enjoyed eating at Babs Seed's house, but Thanksgiving was a family holiday. She didn't want to spend it with someone else's family. "My mother and I will do something special," said Applebloom. "Thanks anyhow."

There was still a week until Thanksgiving. Applebloom waited to see what her mother would suggest. But when she didn't say anything, Applebloom asked, "Could we plan a Thanksgiving dinner here and have company?"

"Oh, no," said Applejack. "I still remember my last attempt at playing hostess."

"Could Grandma and Grandpa come?" asked Applebloom. That would make the holiday really special.

"You've forgotten that they went to Florida. They rented an apartment there until March."

Applebloom had forgotten. "Then it's just you and me," she said sadly.

"It could be worse," said Applejack. "Before it was just me, and now I've got you."

Applebloom looked at her mother. She hadn't asked herself if her mother would mind if she had gone off to visit her father. And she really hadn't thought about what her mother would do all alone on Thanksgiving.

"I know," said Applejack. "Let's have dinner at a restaurant."

Applebloom had always wondered what kind of people ate in restaurants on Thanksgiving. Orphans? Divorced people? People without any family or friends? It would probably be awful. Of course, she admitted, if she had been with her father she would almost certainly have eaten in a restaurant. But somehow that was different. Applebloom didn't expect her father to cook his own holiday turkey.

"I don't want to eat out," Applebloom pouted. "You always make me order the kiddie specials. I don't want the Humpty Dumpty Dinner or the Bo Peep Platter for Thanksgiving. "

"Of course not," agreed Applejack. "You can order anything you want."

That was their plan for the holiday. But Applebloom was not happy about it.

On Thanksgiving morning, she watched the big parade on television. She sat on the floor with her dog, Granny Smith, by her side and wondered what was wrong. She had watched the parade every year since she was a baby, but today something wasn't right. It didn't feel

like Thanksgiving at all. "I guess I'm getting too old to watch this," she told Granny Smith as she switched the dial on the TV, trying without success to find something else.

"It doesn't feel like Thanksgiving," Applebloom complained to her mother.

Her mother nodded. "It's the smell."

"What smell?"

"This is the first year that we don't have a turkey roasting in the oven. The house doesn't smell like Thanksgiving," Applejack explained. "We should invent a spray. You know how they sell rose and lemon deodorant sprays to make your house smell good. We should invent a turkey spray for people who don't roast a turkey on Thanksgiving. We could make a fortune."

But it wasn't just the smell that was wrong, Applebloom knew. It was the absence of her father. This was the first Thanksgiving A.D. It wasn't something to be thankful about.

Applebloom had an idea and went to the telephone. Quickly, she dialed her father's apartment in the city. The phone rang two times before there was a click and she heard her father's voice. "Hello. This is Henry Rawson. I am not at home at the moment, but I will

return your call as soon as possible. At the signal, please leave your name, phone number, and a brief message. You will have twenty seconds."

Applebloom sniffed and blinked her eyes. She had thought that hearing her father's voice would make her feel better. But it just made her feel worse. She hung up without saying anything.

It didn't really matter. He wouldn't be home for another full week.

Applejack had made a reservation at the Homestead Restaurant for two o'clock. At one, Applebloom took off her jeans and started to put on her velvet party dress. She felt silly putting on a fancy dress to eat with her mother. She went into her mother's bedroom and saw that she was putting on her silk print dress.

"Look," her mother said proudly. "All those salads have helped me lose weight. This dress never fit so well before."

Applebloom shrugged. Even though she had once been concerned about her mother getting fat, she was feeling too sorry for herself to care about that now.

She looked down at Granny Smith, who had been following her around. "I want Granny Smith to eat with us," she told her mother.

"The Homestead would never be the same," said Applejack. "You know dogs aren't allowed in restaurants."

"Granny Smith isn't just a dog. She's family. And this is a family holiday," Applebloom sulked. "If she can't come with us, I don't want to go."

"Maybe we can bring home a treat for her," offered Applejack. "A doggie bag."

"I think a whole family should be together on a holiday," said Applebloom. "It isn't right to leave Granny Smith here alone."

"Granny Smith doesn't know it's a holiday. She's probably wondering why you are home from school."

"I don't care. I want her to come with us," said Applebloom.

"Granny Smith is staying home," said Applejack firmly. "You and I are going out. Now that's final."

Applebloom started to sob. "Granny Smith, you know I love you even if I go away."

"Applebloom, stop making a soap opera out of this," warned Applejack. She handed Applebloom a tissue for her nose. "Let's go or we'll miss our reservation."

Applebloom slumped down in the front seat of the car.

She didn't want any dinner at the Homestead. In the Pilgrims' day, animals and people all lived together and they ate together, too.

"You must be very hungry," said Applejack as they drove along. "You hardly had any breakfast at all."

"I'm not hungry," Applebloom growled.

After that Applejack kept her eyes on the road. The Homestead parking lot was almost full, but there was a space near the front. Applejack slowly edged into it, but she didn't allow enough room on the right side.

"Oh, dear," Applejack sighed. She backed out slowly and tried to readjust her angle before pulling in.

Her mother pulled into and out of the space three times before she was finally able to make it. "Dad would have just zipped into this space," Applebloom told her mother as she got out of the car.

"What can I tell you? I'm not perfect," snapped Applejack.

"You can say that again," said Applebloom. She was feeling angry, and angry words kept coming out of her mouth.

Applejack didn't say anything. "What are you going to order?" she asked Applebloom after they were seated.

Applebloom looked down at the menu. "I'll take a broiled lobster."

"For Thanksgiving dinner?" asked Applejack. "The Pilgrim fathers didn't eat lobster."

"I don't care about the Pilgrim fathers. My father eats lobster, and I want one, too."

"It's the most expensive dish on the menu. Are you sure you wouldn't prefer turkey?"

"You promised I could have anything I wanted," Applebloom reminded her mother.

"Yes," agreed her mother. "I'd forgotten that you've developed such expensive tastes."

A family was seated across from the Rawsons: a mother, a father, a boy of seven, a girl of four, and two white-haired grandparents. Applebloom looked at them enviously. They looked like a television commercial for soap or tomato sauce or something. She wished she were a part of that family.

Applebloom leaned sideways in her chair, trying to hear what they were saying. Suddenly the mother turned to the grandmother and in a low voice hissed, "Oh, mother. Do be quiet." Applebloom sat stunned. She felt betrayed. Those were not the words she had expected to hear from this "perfect family." Her eyes filled with tears for about the third time that afternoon. Did she sound that mean when she spoke to her mother?

The waitress came to their table. Applejack ordered the turkey special for herself, and then she turned to Applebloom.

"Me, too," Applebloom whispered.

After the waitress left, Applebloom said, "I can't bring lobster shells home for Granny Smith." Then she smiled at her mother. "I'm sorry, Mom," she said.

"So am I," her mother said. "It's not your fault that you're part of a modern statistic."

"What do you mean?" asked Applebloom.

"More than half of all marriages end in divorce these days," her mother replied. "But children grow up anyway, and divorced people do go on with their lives—even if it may seem to you that I'm not doing such a good job of it right now. Everyone's life has its ups and downs," she said. "Sometimes it just takes a little longer to bounce up again." Her mother reached under the table and squeezed Applebloom's hand. "Let's eat," she said as the waitress put the food on the table.

They had fruit cocktail, roast turkey and stuffing, candied sweet potatoes, string beans, and cranberry sauce. Applejack turned down dessert, even though it came with the dinner. My dress fits too well for me to risk it getting tight again. Besides," she said, "I am very full."

Applebloom was full, too. But that was no reason to turn down apple pie with a scoop of chocolate ice cream.

"That was good," said Applebloom.

"And no dishes to wash," said her mother, smiling.

When Applejack paid the waitress, she said something to her quietly. The woman nodded. In a few minutes, she returned with a paper bag. Applebloom peeked inside and saw two big steak bones for Granny Smith.

"Our dog is part of our family, so we didn't want to forget her today," said Applejack.

"Her name is Granny Smith," said Applebloom. "But she eats everything. Even stuffed cabbage."

Applebloom took her mother's hand as they left the restaurant. The family at the next table was still eating. They looked like the perfect happy family. But looks could be deceiving. Applebloom and her mother and Granny Smith were a family, too.

* * *

Author's Note:

Applebloom is wearing purple t-shirt with clover on it, a gray short woollen coat, a purple flower print short trousers, and light pink ribbon ballet flats.

Applejack is wearing yellow blossom camisole, a blue 3/4 denim jacket, a dark blue boyfriend jeans, a light blue socks with white vertical stripes, and blonde flower wedges.

Babs Seed is wearing golden velour high neck, a orange flared trousers, and a white mules with light brown stripes.

And Granny Smith is wearing light green lace-detail cardigan, a sunflower halter dress, and light pink long polka dot knee boots.


End file.
